Build your own Geiger-Mller counter

Introduction: Geiger Counters and Radiation Detection

F r t is p ec y i e i din a e y asic ei e e c ne e
c n e is a nda en a ype adia i n de ec ne e s in d ced
in 1928 c nsis in a as ed es ndin a i a e ie e e ec ic
e d e een e e a and e i e is s c a i ni in adia i n inciden n
e e i ca se e as ea d n and a a p se c en e een
e i e and e a e e e e e y is s n in Figure 1.
e ci c i e c ne y i e i din is desi ned e ai y si p e
y i e e ipped nde s and i y e end the course i ea n e
a adia i n eas e en in 22 09 and y i ea n ea n c ea p ysics
and adia i n in 22 02
anode (wire) cathode (thin-wall cylinder) Figure 1: Basic geometry of
a Geiger-Mller tube.
insulating seal

fill gas

HV supply +

Background
Basics of Radiation
e e r t can e e any e in

ec a ne ic adia i n isi e i ays ic a es ays

Fas e ec ns p si ns pa ic es

ea y c a ed pa ic es pa ic es ssi n a en s

F ee ne ns

n ec ne n c ea en inee in e i p i a i y e c nce ned i adia i n

a es s any a a ie y n c ea eac i ns inc din e sp n ane s
decay a n c e s e ssi n a n c e s and e si n n c ei n c e s
nde es adi ac i e decay in de eac a es a es a e e e cess ene y
s a y desi na ed as Q is ca ied a ay y e decay p d c s adia i n ic as
s cien ene y p d ce i ni a i n in c n a e ia s is said e
adia i n e e es d is is a 10 eV e e 1 eV 1 6 1019 J
is a c n enien ni ene y sed in n c ea en inee in and p ysics e
t t a sa p e is e n e decays pe sec nd and is en e p essed in
1 Ci 3 7 1010 decays s y e ac i i y 1 226
a
n e n c e s sp i s an a p a pa ic e c nsis in p ns
and ne ns i e a e i n ce s ea y c a ed pa ic es s c as a p as
 Figure 2: Illustrations of the
various decay types.
241
Am 237
Np
n p

(a) decay of 241Am, used in many (b) decay of free
smoke detectors, Q = 5.6 MeV neutron, Q = 0.78 MeV

60
Co 60
Ni

1.17 MeV
1.33 MeV
(c) decay of 60Co (Q = 2.82 MeV) followed by two
decays of the excited 60Ni.

Figure 3: Examples of alpha-

sensitive tubes: (a) is a pan-
cake tube with a large-area
mica window and an anode
made of concentric rings. (b)
shows the mica window of
an end-window tube. The
tip of the anode wire can be
seen in the middle of the
window.
(a) pancake tube (b) end-window tube
(photo credit: Wikimedia) (photo credit: ORAU)
Wikipedia user N. Manytchkine. License CC BY- Courtesy of ORAU Foundation.
SA. This content is excluded from our Creative Used with permission.
Commons license. For more information, see
http://ocw.mit.edu/help/faq-fair-use/.

interact with matter primarily through the electric forces between their positive
charge and the negative electrons in the absorbing matter. As a high-energy alpha
passes through matter, it slows down through many such interactions with the light
electrons. Because any given interaction is very small, the particle trajectory tends
to be mostly straight. The range of alpha particles is fairly short in air, a 2 MeV
alpha has a mean range of only about 1 cm! Hence, detectors for alpha radiation
must have a very thin wall often mica with a thickness of around 0.001 is used,
see Figure 3 for examples. The SBM-20 tubes we will be using have steel walls that
are too thick to be used for alpha radiation.
There are two forms of beta decay. In decay, a neutron in the nucleus essentially
splits into a proton, an electron and a neutrino, thereby increasing the atomic number
of the decaying nucleus. In + decay, a proton in the nucleus essentially splits into a
neutron, a positron (anti-electron) and a neutrino, thereby decreasing the atomic
number of the nucleus. Electrons also interact primarily with the electrons in the
absorbing material. Because the masses are equal in this case, any given interaction
can cause a large change in the trajectory thus electron tracks meander more than
those of alpha particles. Fast electrons also lose energy by emitting light in a process
known as bremsstrahlung. Electrons typically have much longer ranges than alpha
particles, and hence can be seen by the SBM-20 GM tubes we will be using.
Following a radioactive decay, a nucleus is often left in an excited state. When
this state decays, a very high energy photon is emitted in what is called gamma
decay. Photons can lose their energy through several mechanisms: photoelectric

NSE: Build your own Geiger-Mller counter 2

absorption by the electrons of the absorber, Compton scattering from the electrons
of the absorber and (at high energies) pair production in the electric field of the
nuclei in the absorber. Gamma rays also have long ranges and hence can be detected
by the SBM-20 GM tubes we will be using. You can tell the dierence between beta
and gamma radiation based on how easy it is to block with a high-Z absorber such
as lead gamma will penetrate the barrier more readily than beta.

Principles of Soldering
Safety Note: Solder contains lead be sure to wash your hands after handling
solder, and do not solder near food or drink!

Safety Note: Molten solder can be flung towards you if a component slips. Al-
ways wear eye protection when soldering!

Electronics are assembled using solder, alloys designed to have a low melting point,
high electrical conductivity and good mechanical properties. The solder we will be
using is 60% tin and 40% lead. The following tips will help you to make a secure
joint every time:

Before you apply solder to a joint, make sure the joint is mechanically stable.
For example, when soldering to a circuit board, bend the leads outwards once
they are through the hole.

Clean the irons tip on a moist sponge or brass sponge before and after making
each joint.

Put a small amount of solder on the tip of the iron right before touching it to
the part this will help to conduct heat to the part.

Make sure the tip of the iron contacts both parts to be connected you need
them both hot to make a good joint!

Feed the solder into the joint from opposite where the iron touches if the
solder doesnt melt, then you probably havent gotten the joint hot enough.

Dont overheat parts a few seconds should do it. If you cant get the solder
to melt as described above within about ten seconds or less, take the iron away,
clean the tip and put more solder at the tip of the iron to help conduct heat
better.

A good solder joint should be shiny and wetted to the surface, not dull and
balled up on the surface see Figure 4.

Figure 4: Cross-section
of good versus bad solder
beaded up joint.

solder is dull

(a) good (b) bad

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Resistors
Resistors are one of the fundamental building blocks of electronics. As implied by
the name, they resist the flow of current. Given a current I , a resistor of value R
develops a potential dierence V = IR across it (Ohms law). The value of a resistor
is indicated by the color code shown in Figure 5.

Figure 5: Resistor color code

chart. The value of the re-
sistor is indicated by two or
4 7 100 5% = 4.7 k 5% three value bands, a multi-
plier band and a tolerance
color band 1 band 2 (band 3) multiplier tolerance band. Note that 1% and
2% resistors are ambigu-
black 0 0 0 1 ous as brown and red are
brown 1 1 1 10 1% valid as both tolerance and
red 2 2 2 100 2% value bands always double-
orange 3 3 3 1 k check the value of precision
resistors!
yellow 4 4 4 10 k
green 5 5 5 100 k 0.5%
blue 6 6 6 1 M 0.25%
violet 7 7 7 10 M 0.1%
grey 8 8 8 (100 M) 0.05%
white 9 9 9
gold 0.1 5%
silver 0.01 10%

1 0 0 10k 1% = 1.00 M 1%

Capacitors
Capacitors are another fundamental building block of electronics. A capacitor stores
charge: given a capacitor of capacitance C charged to a potential V, the charge stored
is Q = CV. The value of the capacitors we will be using is indicated by a three-digit
number code that works similarly to the resistor color code described above: the
first two digits are the first two digits of the value and the third digit is the power
of ten multiplier to get the capacitance in picofarads (1 pF = 1012 F). For example,
the code 224 means 22 104 pF = 220 nF.

Inductors
Inductors are the third fundamental building block of electronics. An inductor
responds to changes in current: given an inductor of inductance L with time-varying
current I flowing through it, the voltage is V = LdI/dt. The value of the inductor we
will be using is indicated by a three-digit number code that works very much like
the capacitor code described above: the first two digits are the first two digits of the
value and the third digit is the power of ten multiplier to get the inductance in
microhenries (1 H = 106 H). For example, the code 102 means 10 102 H =
1 mH.

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Assembling the Geiger-Mller Counter
The circuit diagram is shown in Figure 6. The parts needed are shown in Figure 7 and
parts lists broken down by subassembly are given at each step. You will be assembling
the circuit on a printed circuit board (PCB), the top of which is shown in Figure 8.
In the subsequent steps, components involved in the active step will be shown in full
color and components that have already been installed but are unimportant for the
step at hand will be shown as black silhouettes.

Tip: Always disconnect the battery when done testing you dont want to wreck
your circuit by shorting it out!

Tip: When testing, always make sure the board is supported such that there is
nothing shorting any connections out on it this includes your hands as well as
any debris on your workbench. The two safest approaches are to grip the edges
of the board with the work holder such that the board is held o the workbench
or to put standos in the mounting holes at the corners of the board.

Tip: With components that start out with short leads that you cant bend to hold
the part in place, it sometimes helps to use a small piece of tape to hold the part
in place while soldering.

Safety Note: When using wire cutters, wire fragments can be flung with enough
force to injure your eyes. Keep your eye protection on while trimming leads.
Another useful tip is to hold your hand over the area where you are cutting to
catch the leads as you trim them.

Troubleshooting Tips
If a circuit doesnt work as expected, check the following:

1. Make sure the correct components have been placed in the correct spots.

2. Check the orientation of diodes, transistors and chips with respect to the
silkscreen outline.

3. Make sure that adjacent pads didnt become shorted together (bridged)
during soldering.

4. Make sure you are making the measurement properly: always hook the ground
of your scope and the COM lead of your meter to the GND pin or one of
the grounded mounting holes in the corners of the board.

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 VCC
GND
5

4
11
- + 3 1 7
VI VO
6 10
8 12

2
9 14
13

3
1
2

NSE: Build your own Geiger-Mller counter

1 8
1_GND 8_VCC
2 7
2_TRIG 7_DIS
3 6
3_OUT 6_THR
4 5
4_RES 5_CTRL

1
2
3
1
2
3
1 8 4
1_OUT 8_GND
5
2 7 6
2_VCC 7_RT
3 6
3_COMP 6_DTC
4 5
4_FB 5_SCP
the GM counter.
Figure 6: Full schematic for

6
 Figure 7: Parts of the GM
counter.

Figure 8: The board has

two layers in (a) the top
layer is shown as red and
the bottom layer is shown
as blue. Notice that most of
the bottom layer is a solid
area of copper this is the
ground plane, and is what is
defined as zero volts for the
circuit.

(a) top view with traces (b) top view with pads and silkscreen only

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Step 1: Build the power supply
Note: The 78L05 linear regulator must be installed in the correct orientation in
this step. Be sure you have it right before soldering it in!

Note: Dont get the 78L05 linear regulator mixed up with the transistors, which
are in the same style of package!

The power supply provides the 5 V that the rest of the circuit runs on.
Parts Used 1. Hook up the leads from the battery snap as shown
Name Description/Value Diagram in Figure 9, taking care that the red wire goes on the
9V battery snap side marked with a +. Be sure to follow Figure 9
closely or the wires to the battery will soon break!
slider switch 2. Solder the battery wires from the top of the board,
IC1 78L05 trim any excess length.
C1, C2 10 F filtering capacitor 106
3. Insert the parts as shown in the diagram. Make sure
flat side faces to right the flat side of the 78L05 linear regulator faces to-
wards the two large capacitors.
106

106

4. Flip the board over, grip the edges with the work
holder (if using one).

5. Solder all of the wires you just inserted and trim the
excess lead length protruding from the board.

Figure 9: Thread the battery

leads in from the top of the
board and up again through
the back, leaving a loop to
take up strain.

(a) top of board (b) bottom of board

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Step 2: Test the power supply
verify 5V here connect COM here 1. Support the board such that none of the connections
are shorted by hands, lead clippings, etc.

2. Check that the power switch is in the o position

(i.e., away from the text ON printed on the board).

3. Connect the battery and turn on the power switch.

4. Using the digital multimeter (DMM), check that the

voltage at the pad indicated with the red circle in
the figure is at about 5 V with respect to any of the
grounded mounting holes in the corners.

5. Turn the power switch o.

6. Disconnect the battery.

Step 3: Build the inverter

Note: There are two parts that must be installed in the correct orientation in this
step. Be sure you have them right before soldering them in!

The inverter inverts the pulse from the GM tube. Parts Used
Name Description/Value Diagram
flat side faces towards bottom R14 5.1 k 1/2 W resistor
R15 10 k resistor
470

R16 1 k resistor
C5 47 pF capacitor
Q3 2N3904 NPN transistor
IO1 6-pin header

1. Insert the parts as shown. Make sure the FLAT side

of the transistor faces DOWN.

2. The short end of the 6-pin header goes into the board,
with the plastic part on top, see Figure 10.

3. Flip the board over, solder all of the components in

and trim the excess leads.

Figure 10: Correct header installation: long gold pins and

plastic on TOP of board.

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 6-pin output header description
The 6-pin header you just installed provides easy access to the important signals in
the circuit, summarized in the table below:

IO header pin descriptions

Label Description
HV 1000:1 voltage divider on HV power supply
GM GM tube I-to-V output
INV Inverter output
PS Pulse stretcher output
PWM Power converter switching waveform
GND Ground

Note: Whenever you are using the oscilloscope, always connect the shield (black
lead when using a BNC-to-minigrabber cable) of each channel to the GND pin.
Be careful to not short to adjacent pins!

Step 4: Test the inverter

use a wire to connect the 1. Connect channel A of the scope to GM.

nodes circled in red
2. Connect channel B of the scope to INV.

3. Dont forget the ground connections to GND for

both channels!

4. Check that the power switch is o and that the board

is supported away from any materials that might
short it out.

5. Connect the battery, turn the power switch on.

6. Use a wire to short the two pads circled in red to-

gether, being careful to not touch adjacent pads.

7. On the scope, observe the signal from your wire on

channel A and the output from the inverter on chan-
nel B, you should see signals like Figure 11.

8. Turn the power switch o and disconnect the battery.

hook A to GM hook B to INV
ground both channels to GND

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 Figure 11: Waveforms for
the inverter test. The simu-
lated GM pulse is channel A
(green), the inverter output
is channel B (blue). The in-
verter takes the 5 V pulse
signal and converts it to zero.
With the wire removed, the
traces will be reversed the
inverter will output 5 V on
channel B while the pulse on
channel A is zero.

Figure 12: Chip sockets

allow chips to be removed
without needing to remove
any solder. When installing
a chip, it is very important
to make sure the notch on
the top of the chip is in the
right spot and that the chip
is fully seated in the socket.

(Note that what is shown is a

slightly dierent board than
what you are building.)

notches aligned with notches aligned

silkscreen outline, with silkscreen
chips not installed yet outline/notch on
socket
(a) while soldering: (b) side of fully-inserted chip (c) for testing:
sockets only chips inserted

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Step 5: Build the pulse stretcher
Note: There are two components that must be installed in the correct orientation
in this step. Be sure you have them right before soldering them in!

The pulse stretcher turns the very short pulse from the GM tube into a 1.5 ms pulse.

Parts Used 1. We will be using chip sockets to make it easier to

Name Description/Value Diagram replace chips if something goes wrong: see Figure 12.
Do not insert the chips themselves until the last step.

LMC555
LMC555 timer (and DIP-8
IC3 socket) 2. Insert the small LED with the longer lead in the hole
R17 6.2 k resistor nearest to where LED2 will go.
R19 75 resistor 3. Insert the parts as shown in the diagram, bending
C6 220 nF capacitor leads as necessary to hold them in place. Make sure
C7 10 nF capacitor to line up the notch at the top of the chip socket with
LED1 small blue LED the notch indicated on the silkscreen outline.

notch at top longer lead on this side 4. Flip the board over, solder all of the components in
and trim the excess leads.

5. Insert the 555 chip into its socket with the notch as
shown on the silkscreen outline.

224
103

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Step 6: Test the pulse stretcher

use a wire to connect the 1 C nnec c anne e sc pe

nodes circled in red
2 C nnec c anne e sc pe

3 n e e nd c nnec i ns
c anne s

4 C ec a e p e is and a e a d is a ay
any a e ia s a i s i

C nnec e a ey n ep e s ic n

6 se a ie s e pads ci c ed in ed
e e ein ca e n c ad acen pads

7 n e sc pe se e e si na y ie n
c anne and e p se s e c e n c anne

y c d ap e i e ie y en e
p se s e c e s dp a1 s n
s a e p se appin is as is a d d
hook A to GM hook B to PS e ise e s e c e i e n as n as
ground both channels to GND e i e is in c n ac
en e p se s e c e is n e e
s d i p
s d see si na s i e Fi e 13

8 n ep e s ic and disc nnec e a ey

Figure 13: Waveforms for

the pulse stretcher test.
The simulated GM pulse
is channel A (green), the
pulse stretcher is channel B
(blue). Channel B can be up
to 5 V, in which case the two
traces would be right on top
of each other.

NSE: Build your own Geiger-Mller counter 13

Step 7: Build the filter and red LED pump
Note: The chip and LED must be installed in the correct orientation in this step.
Be sure you have them right before soldering them in!

The filter collects the GM tube pulses to control the color of LED2: the higher the
count rate, the more red LED2 will get. The red pump drives this proportional
current through the red LED.

Parts Used
Name Description/Value Diagram
MCP6004 quad op-amp MCP6004
IC4 (and DIP-14 socket)
LED2 large red-green LED
R20 100 k resistor
R21 36 k resistor
R22 2.4 k resistor
R23, R24,
R25, R26 1 k resistor
C8 10 F capacitor 106
106

1. Set the MCP6004 chip aside until the last step.

2. Insert the other parts into the board as shown.

3. Make sure the notch at the top of the chip socket is

notch to left flat side to bottom oriented as indicated on the silkscreen outline.

4. The FLAT side of the large LED should face towards

LED1. (The flat is only present on the thin band at
the base of the plastic housing.)

5. Flip the board over, solder all of the components in

and trim the excess leads.

6. Insert the MCP6004 chip into its socket with its

notch towards the edge of the board.

Step 8: Test the red LED pump

1. Check that the power switch is o and that the board is supported away from
any materials that might short it out.

2. Connect the battery, turn the power switch on.

3. Repeat the procedure from the previous tests: hold a wire at the right lead of
R16 and tap it on the lower, circular pad of the SBM-20.

4. You should see the red LED light up as you hold the wire in place, then gradu-
ally fade away when you remove the wire.

5. Turn the power switch o and disconnect the battery.

NSE: Build your own Geiger-Mller counter 14

 Step 9: Build the green LED dierence amplifier and pump
The green dierence amplifier and pump drive current through the green LED
inversely proportional to the count rate.

Parts Used
Name Description/Value Diagram
R27, R28, R29,
R30, R31, R32,
R33, R34 1 k resistor

1. Insert the parts into the board as shown.

2. Flip the board over, solder all of the components in

and trim the excess leads.

Step 10: Test the green pump

1. Check that the power switch is o and that the board is supported away from
any materials that might short it out.

2. Connect the battery, turn the power switch on.

3. Repeat the procedure from the previous tests: hold a wire at the right lead of
R16 and tap it on the lower, circular pad of the SBM-20.

4. The LED should go from green to red as you hold the wire in place, then fade
back to green when you remove the wire.

5. Turn the power switch o and disconnect the battery.

NSE: Build your own Geiger-Mller counter 15

Step 11: Build the piezo driver
Note: The transistor and piezo must be installed in the correct orientation in this
step. Be sure you have them right before soldering them in!

The piezo driver uses the full battery voltage to produce more volume from the
high-impedance piezoelectric speaker.

flat side faces to right plus sign to right Parts Used

Name Description/Value Diagram

+ piezo speaker
R18 1 k resistor
Q4 2N3904 NPN transistor

1. Insert the components as shown, making sure to put

the transistor in with the flat side facing TOWARDS
the piezo as indicated on the silkscreen outline.

2. Also make sure the plus sign on the piezo is in the

hole closest to the edge of the board.

3. Flip the board over, solder all of the components in

and trim the leads.

Step 12: Test the speaker

1. Check that the power switch is o and that the board is supported away from
any materials that might short it out.

2. Connect the battery, turn the power switch on.

3. Repeat the procedure from the previous two tests: hold a wire at the right lead
of R16 and tap it on the lower, circular pad of the SBM-20.

4. If you tap briefly enough you should hear a sharp click sound. The slower you
are, the more of a tone you will hear. If you hold the wire in place, the tone
will be continuous.

5. Turn the power switch o and disconnect the battery.

NSE: Build your own Geiger-Mller counter 16

Step 13: Build the HV divider/bleeder
Note: The 3-pin header must be installed in the correct orientation in this step.
Be sure you have it right before soldering it in!

The resistors installed in this step serve both to help drain the high voltage power
supplys capacitor after the device is turned o and to form a 1000:1 voltage divider
that helps you to safely measure the output of the power supply with conventional
test equipment. Because of the high impedances involved, it is necessary to use
dierent resistors for dierent input impedances of test equipment. The two possible
states of jumper JP1 select the type of equipment used: 10 M for a DMM, 1 M
for a standard oscilloscope.

Parts Used
Name Description/Value Diagram
R9, R10 1 G resistor
R11 1 M resistor
R12 1.1 M resistor

JP1 3-pin header

2-pin jumper

1. Set the 2-pin jumper aside until the last step.

2. The short end of the 3-pin header goes into the board,
with the plastic part on top, just like the 6-pin header.

3. Insert the other parts as shown.

4. Flip the board over and grip it with the work holder,
solder all of the components in and trim the excess
leads.

5. Install the 2-pin jumper in the 10M position.

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Step 14: Build the boost converter
Safety Note: From this step on, there will be parts of the board at 400 V when
turned on. The available current is small, but is still enough to give you a nasty
shock (and probably destroy all of your chips in the process). Be very careful to
not touch the board whenever the battery is connected!

Note: There are five components that must be installed in the correct orientation
in this step. Be sure you have them right before soldering them in!

The boost converter steps the 9 V battery voltage up to the 400 V needed for the GM
tube. The TL5001 is a general-purpose power converter controller that provides
active control of the output voltage.

Parts Used
Name Description/Value Diagram

TL5001 chip (and DIP-8

IC2 socket)
D2 BA159 diode
R1, R2 10 k resistor
R3 10 M resistor
105

R4 22 k resistor
153

102
R5 20 k potentiometer
472 R6 4.7 k resistor
BA

R7 4.7 M resistor
R8 6.8 M resistor
C3 15 nF capacitor
C4 1 F capacitor
brass dot to left notch to left
flat sides to left silver band to right CHV 4.7 nF HV capacitor
Q1, Q2 FQN1N50C MOSFET
102
L1 1 mH inductor
1. Set the TL5001 chip aside until the last step.
2. Insert the other parts into the board as shown.
3. Make sure the silver band on the diode is towards the HV capacitor as indi-
cated on the silkscreen outline/in the diagram.
4. Make sure the notch at the top of the chip socket is oriented as indicated on
the silkscreen outline.
5. Make sure the brass screw on top of the potentiometer ends up away from
the transistors as shown on the silkscreen outline/in the diagram.
6. Make sure the flat sides of the transistors face AWAY from the inductor.
7. Flip the board over, solder all of the components in and trim the excess leads.
8. Insert the TL5001 chip into its socket with the notch to the left.

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Step 15: Note locations of high voltage

Step 16: Tune the boost converter

1 C ec a e p e s i c is and a e a d
is s pp ed a ay any a e ia s a i
s i

2 C nnec y e V pin C nnec e

s C ead e pin

3 a es e a e pe is se a 10

4 Make sure no one is touching the board and that

there are no debris that could create a short in con-
tact with the board.

C nnec e a ey n ep e s ic n

6 sin e p as ic ad s in n e ass p en
i e e n c c ise n i e e e eads ess
an 300 V Be careful to not touch the high volt-
age portions of the board while doing this!
make sure jumper is at 10M
measure HV supply on HV 7 en n e n c n e c c ise n i e e
be sure to connect meter COM to GND e eads 400 V e di ide is 1000 1 s is c
esp nds 400 V p e V s pp y

8 n ep e s ic and disc nnec e a ey

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Step 17: Install the GM tube resistor and clips
Figure 14: Wire ready to be soldered to clip.
Step 18: Install into the case
battery clip:
#2-56 flat head
screws into hex nuts
circuit board:
#4-40 self-tapping
pan head screws
GM tube:
#4-40 flat head to
attach hex standoffs
to case, plastic #4-40
pan head to attach
clips to standoffs
NSE: Build your own Geiger-Mller counter
Parts Used
Name Description/Value Diagram
fuse clips for GM tube (2)
R13 5.1 M
1. Solder wires to the fuse clips:
(a) Cut sections of red and black wire each about
6 (15 cm) long and strip about 1/8 (3 mm) of
insulation from each end of these wires.
(b) Use pliers to form one end of each wire into a
J shape.
(c) Hook the J into the hole in the tab on the clip,
then crush the hook so it will stay still when
soldering. Refer to Figure 14.
(d) Solder the wires to the solder tab.
2. At this point, you may wish to use the GM tube and
case as a guide to trim your wires to a more appropri-
ate length but dont cut too much o!
3. Insert the loose end of the red wire into the hole
marked with a +, insert the black wire into the
other hole in the block labelled SBM-20.
4. Insert the 5.1 M resistor as shown.
5. Flip the board over, solder all of the components in
and trim the excess leads.
1. Make sure the battery is disconnected, the power switch is o and that you
have removed all debris from the board.
2. Use #2-56 3/16 screws with nuts inside the case to secure the battery clip,
then put a piece of electrical tape over the nuts to protect the battery.
3. Use #4-40 3/16 self-threading screws to attach the board to the standos
with the board oriented so the battery snap is close to the clip you just installed.
4. Use #4-40 1/4 screws to attach the two hexagonal standos inside the case.
5. Screw the fuse clips to the standos using plastic #4-40 3/16 screws. You
might need to bend the clip out a bit using pliers, just dont bend it too far!
6. Bend the tabs on the fuse clips so they are nearly vertical.
7. Insert the GM tube into the clips with the end marked with + at the clip with
the red wire. Be gentle when pushing down on the tube it is very fragile!
Push down on the plastic right next to the clips to avoid crushing the tube.
20
Step 19: Test the GM tube

1. Mak ur th ow r switch s o that no bri

h s f ll n on the bo r .

2. Hook h l A of our co to th GM in.

3. Hook h l B of our co to th PS in.

4. o t th b tter , tur th ower sw t h on.

5. At ty l b kgrou l v l , you houl he r lick

th fir t co or less.

6. Obs rv the g l on the o om r to

Figur 15.

7. Tur th ow r switch o. You r ow r y for

fi l mbly.

hoo to hoo to
gro nd both channels to

Figure 15: a eforms for

the com lete co nter
hannel green is the
act al lse from the
t be channel bl e is
the lse stretcher o can
ad st the ime i nob
to get a closer loo at the
lse from the t be

NSE: Build your own Geiger-Mller counter

Step 20: Final assembly
1. Make sure the power switch is o.

2. Insert the battery into the clip and connect it.

3. Make sure the battery is not touching the clip holding the GM tube!

4. If the posts in the top run into the tabs on the clips holding the GM tube,
remove the GM tube to avoid damaging it, then bend the tabs to be closer to
vertical. Once the top fits, carefully put the tube back in, following the same
precautions as before.

5. Put the top on with the rectangular notch over the power switch and secure it
with the four self-threading screws.

Figure 16: Completed GM

counter.

This project was designed by Mark Chilenski (graduate student, Course 22). Numerous productive
conversations were had with Prof. Anne White, Prof. Mike Short, Matthew DAsaro (graduate student,
Course 6) and John Walk (graduate student, Course 22) in the design of this project.

NSE: Build your own Geiger-Mller counter 22

MIT OpenCourseWare
http://ocw.mit.edu

22.S902 Do-It-Yourself (DIY) Geiger Counters

January IAP 2015

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